PC Games Account For Only 14% Of 2007's Total Game Sales

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PC Games Account For Only 14% Of 2007's Total Game Sales

During 2007, the sale of PC games generated only 14 percent of the gaming industry's $18.85 billion software revenue, according to recently released figures from market research firm NPD.

The firm claims the surprisingly low numbers are a result of the proliferation of digital distribution platforms such as Valve's Steam service, which the NPD does not factor into its results.

When asked how many games were sold in 2007 via Steam, Valve's Doug Lombardi told Game|Life that they "don't release the Steam sales numbers."

In less shocking news, the two best-selling titles of the year were World of Warcraft and its expansion The Burning Crusade. The two titles made up almost a third of total PC game sales.

Without the data from digital distribution it would be premature to say these numbers are a harbinger of doom for PC gaming, but they certainly don't inspire much confidence.

Even huge PC releases like Crysis and Unreal Tournament 3, which combined for roughly 120,000 copies sold, have seen unexpected failure on the platform during the last year.

I personally believe PC gaming will never die due simply to how many PCs are out there (do you know anyone without one?), though with consoles taking on the role of computers more and more, it's not surprising to see the market shift toward the cheaper alternative.